Oil drum tumbling device



June 6, 1950 I J. F. BLACK 2,510,858

OIL DRUM TUMBLING DEVICE Filed Aug. 25, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 a 40 lemmiaolmlefilmlmlmlmzmlmimim A JNVENTOR. JOHN F. BLACK 1% @RZVE Y3 June 6, 1950 J. F. BLACK OIL DRUM TUMBLING DEVICE Filed Aug. 25, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 1|. 1: K 3 0C Y A mm w w V U A H mF. Z m.) T mum A M 1% T... k I l l l l l i lfl HH Q\ June 6, 1950 J. F. BLACK on. DRUM TUMBLING mavxcs 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 25, 1948 Q N w m wg k Patented June 6, M 1950 OIL DRUM TUMBLING DEVICE John F. Black, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to Circo Products Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application August 25, 1948, Serial No. 45,999

1 Claim.

The present invention relates generally to material-cleaning equipment, and is more particularly concerned with novel and useful devices for supporting and revolving cylinders containing a grease solvent or other detergents and the metal parts to be cleaned.

It is customary in cleaning automotive brake shoes, gears and the like to place these articles in open-ended metal drums inclined so that their open ends are elevated to prevent spillage therefrom of the drum contents. The loaded drums are placed on tables or racks and revolved on their axes for a'predetermined period to assure substantially complete removal of rease, oil, dirt and the like from the articles inclined positions of the drums. In either case I v the unloading operation is awkward and difiicult,

and is, therefore, time-consuming and expensive.

Accordingly, it is the primary object of my present invention to provide apparatus for removing dirt, grease and the like from metal shapes through the use of rotating drums by means of which the prior uneconomical unloading operations may be avoided.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a drum-carrying device which will enable ready rotation of the drum to effect the desired cleaning of the metal shapes disposed therein and will also enable rapid and economical removal of these shapes from the drum.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide apparatus whereby loading and unloading of the cleaning drum may easily be carried out by one man without assistance of others and without lifting effort.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide drum-type cleaning apparatus in which the drum may be placed upon or removed from a drum-carrying rack by one man without the assistance of others or of auxiliary machinery.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art, as will the manner in which the foregoing objects are realized in accordance with this invention, upon referring to the following detailed description of one form of the device of this invention and the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of this invention showing a cleaning drum and carrying meanstherefor;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the apparatus of Fig. 1 disposed in unloading position;

Figure 3 is a sectional elevational view taken on line 33 of Fig. 2;

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view of the apparatus of Fig. 1, showing the drum carrier with its parts in normal position and showing the drum in customary position on the carrier; and

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

In general the apparatus of this invention, as illustrated, comprises a cylindrical vessel or drum D having an open end ID to receive articles to be cleaned, and, if desired, a liquid or solid cleanser to eifect the cleaning when the drum is rotated on its axis, a table T for carrying the drum and having shafts l2 along each side carrying rollers l3 to engage the sides of drum D, means M for driving shafts l2 and thereby rotating rollers 13 and the drum, and a pedestal P having a top edge 14 disposed at an angle to its base so that table T, which is pivotally carried. by the base, may be tilted so that the contents of the drum will be retained within the drum during rotation. The table T is mounted on pedestal P and driving means M is so disposed on the table that the table normally assumes the inclined position shown in Fig. 1 with the axis of the drum paralleling the plane of pedestal top It. It will be understood that the foregoing apparatus is a complete combination and a workable unit and that the applicants invention resides also in the sub-combination consisting of the foregoing parts with the exception of the drum itself, it being contemplated that containers of other shapes or forms than that shown might possibly be used to advantage under certain circumstances.

Pedestal P consists of a pair of sheet metal end plates l6 and side plates l1, and angles I9 screwed to the edge portions of the plates whereby the said plates are held together, as indicated in Fig. 4. As viewed in Figs. 2 and 4, side plates I! have relatively long inclined edges and opposed relatively short and substantially ver- 'tical edges, the upper edges of the side plates provided with transverse aligned apertures in approximately their mid-sections to receive the trunnions of bar 2| and three cross brace bars 25 connecting the sides and bracing the table. The angles 24 overhang the sides of the pedestal, as indicated in Fig. 3 and shown in more detail in Fig. 5, and are so dimensioned lengthwise that one end of the table upon which the motor assembly is carried may rest in inclined position upon the pedestal. The front portion of the table carries bearing blocks 26 for the shafts l2. The rear portion of table T carries a. sheet metal platform 21 consisting of a top plate 28, two side plates 29 secured to the sides of the table by screws and to the top plate by welds or other suitable means, and a stiffening plate 30 which extends transversely through approximately the midsection of the platform, bearing against sides 24 of the table and top plate 28 and being attached suitably by welds to said top plate and side plates 29. Plate 30 is suitably transversely apertured to receive rearward extensions of shafts l2. Within the platform but forward of the plate 30, an idler roller 32 is provided for engagement with the lower portion of the closed end of the drum, said roller being rotatably secured to one of the table cross braces 25. Thus with the drum in the position shown in Figs. 2 and 4, roller 32 revolves as the drum is rotated and serves to prevent the drum from moving beyond a predetermined point toward the rear of the table.

Driving mechanism M comprises an electric motor 36 mounted on plate 28 and having a sprocketed drive shaft 31 extending toward the rear of table T for operative engagement with a chain 38 which is engaged with a sprocket 40 of a speed reduction assembly, including in addition a sprocket 42 of substantially reduced diameter and a shaft 43 to which sprockets 49 and 42 are keyed. A pair of sprockets 44 are keyed to the rear ends of shafts 12 for operative enagement with a second chain 46 which also engages sprocket 42.

The chain 46 is held taut by means of a bar 50 pivotally secured at one end to back plate 59 and carrying adjacent to its other end a small idler sprocket which engages the chain 46, and a tension spring 52 connected intermediate the ends of bar 50 and retained by a post on back plate 59.

The driving mechanism, with the exception of the motor, is enclosed in a housing 55 fastened to the rear end portion of table T and comprising side plates 51, top plates 58 meeting to define a peak adjacent to and above the motor drive shaft, and a back plate 59 and front plate 60 which bear against the edges of plates 51 and 58 and cooperate with said plates to define a substantially closed space. Plates 51 and 58 are held in place preferably by means of screws so that they may be readily removed to expose the interior of the housing, suitable brackets Bl being provided for this purpose, as shown in Fig. 3.

From the foregoing description it will be clear to those skilled in the art how the shafts and. rollers therein are driven by means of motor 36 and how the drum is thereby rotated with its axis disposed at a substantial angle to the horizontal so that its contents are not spilled during the cleaning operation. It will also be understood that the weight of the driving mechanism is distributed on the table in such a manner that even with the drum containing a maximum charge of cleaning substance and articles to be cleaned, the table will be disposed, as shown in Fig. 1, to retain the contents of the drum. At the same time, however, it will be appreciated that the table may be tilted from its normal position to a substantially horizontal position, as shown in Fig. 2, by the application of a relatively small weight or force to the forward end of the table. Loading and unloading of the drum, therefore, can be easily effected by one man, and the liquid or free-flowing solid cleanser content of the drum may be discharged without removing the drum from the table, merely by tilting the drum so that its open end is disposed downwardly to allow such discharge flow. Furthermore, removal of the drum itself from the table, or placing of the drum upon the table is easily accomplished by suitably tilting the table as described. All these advantages, of course, are supplemented by the fact that the table, when in rest position, will always be disposed so that the drum and contents thereof will be retained in the desired location during the cleaning operation, and there is no possibility of an operator making the mistake of starting the drum-rotating mechanism before the table is in the proper position for this safely to be done.

Although I have described only one preferred embodiment of the present invention, I contemplate other forms of the invention, as will be apparent from the appended claim.

Having thus described the present invention so that others skilled in the art will be able to understand and practice the same, I state that what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is defined in what is claimed.

What is claimed is:

Apparatus for removing dirt, grease and the like from metal articles contained in a cylindrical vessel comprising means including an elongated table and a pair of spaced parallel rollercarrying shafts carried by the table to engage and support such a vessel, stationary abutment means comprising a pedestal disposed below the table to limit tilting motion of the table in one direction to a predetermined extent, said pedestal having sloping upper edges to engage the table and support it in inclined position, trunnion means supported by the pedestal including a bar extending transversely of the table below an intermediate portion thereof and pivotally engaging the table intermediately of its ends, and means for axially rotating the vessel comprising a drive shaft and mechanism operatively associated with the drive shaft and the roller-carrying shafts for rotating the latter shafts.

JOHN F. BLACK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS France May 17, 1929 

